Palm Officially Releases m125
Palm Inc. finally officially released the m125 today, one of the most leaked handheld releases ever.
This new mid-range model is a combination of the m100 and m500 series. It has the m100's general shape but uses the Universal Connector that first appeared on the m500 series. Its most significant feature is it has a side-mounted SD/MMC slot. It has a monochrome screen, runs Palm OS 4.0 with a 33 MHz chip and 8 MB of memory. It costs $250.
The m125 is 4.8 by 3.1 by .87 inches and weighs 5.31 oz. It weighs less than had been originally rumored.
Like Palm's low-end models, this handheld does not have flash ROM. This means that its operating system can not be upgraded, though small patches can be applied to fix bugs. In addition, it has the slightly smaller screen that is also on the m100 series, though the resolution has not changed. Users can put the clip-on faceplates from the m100 series on the m125 to change its appearance.
The m125 is expected to cause some confusion among peripheral buyers as it can use some but not all that have been designed for the m100 series and some but not all from the m500 series. The situation is reminiscent of the Palm IIIc which could use many of the III series accessories but not all of them due to its larger size..
It comes with Documents To Go to allow users to open and edit Microsoft Word and Excel files on their handheld. it also comes with MGI PhotoSuite Mobile Edition.
The m125 has been designed to appeal to first-time buyers. John Cook, senior director of product management atPalm, said, "These are people that are very sensitive to brand and price, and they have been waiting for that right kind of mixture of feature and functionality before they purchase."
Despite just being announced, the m125 has been on store shelves for days and was in a Dell catalog weeks ago. The specs for this handheld were leaked to this site last month and the pictures that were leaked to PDA Geek are now on the Palm Store.
Thanks to nXt for the tip. -Ed
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RE: Universal Connector
It's possible people like Novatel Wireless made a mistake naming their peripherals for the m500 series as all future Palm models will be able to use them. At least they will as long as Palm continues to use the UC.
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News Editor
RE: Hmmm........
some customers feel they got more.
Palm has done it again!
m100-Retired as price drops on m105. All Palm models would have a minimum of 8mb of ram.
m105-Entry level Palm with 8mb.
m125-Deluxe 100 series with expandability and higher operating system.
IIIc-Retired
Vx-Cancelled and retired to the Smithsonian Institute.
m500-Retired due to lack of interest and competition within Palm's own structure of handhelds.
m505-Palm's executive class standard handheld.
VIIx-Retired due to forthcoming 700 series.
m700-Palm's new wireless, thin handheld.
m705-The hopefully color version of the m700
m900-A 2 ounce, 2 mm thick aluminum cased color handheld with 64 mb of internal ROM, 32 mb of flash rom, SD port, unbreakable color display with adjustable brightness, plutonium battery for 2 years of use on a single charge, jog dial, mp3, wireless, bluetooth, Palm OS 5.0, voice activiated with voice recording capability, a hard case actually manufactured by Palm, a stylus with a pen and a laser pointer, fiber optic cradle syncronization, built in modem and a built in security system that uses the infrared port as a retinal scanner. That should even shut the trolls up if they come out with THIS model!
Keep on Palming!
Power Up!
RE: m900
RE: Palm has done it again!
Well, yes . . they *have* done that again.
My Visor Platimum is loong in the tooth, but there isn't much better stuff out there for sure (except for the cool Sony's! and the one with the virt. graffiti area)
m900
RE: Palm has done it again!
"m900: For the man who doesn't need his Palm."
*shrugs*
RE: m900
RE: Palm has done it again!
it has only one button for Zen simplicity, made out of platinum silver (just like Sony would have done on the old day when Yankowsky was still working for them)
It would be black and white screen, which display clock and Palm alarm logo superbly.
It would rid of all worldly app need. since it already achieve nirvana perfection.
why would anybody need anything? stare at the palm logo and the clock and contemplate...and all your desire and longing will be fulfilled. (hey if you have enlightenment, what else do you need?)
PALM m900!, for somebody who doesn't need anything else what want everything else. It's Zen. Pure. SImple.
if you wand handheld and all that complicated app stuff, get PPC for gawd sake. (how convoluted, yuck)
heh heh...
what a bunch of crock.
RE: Palm has done it again!
at the time m900 in the market, palm computing will be out dated
RE: m900
Side-Mounted SD Slot
With a larger SD device like a GPS or a camera it will be very unwieldly in the pocket and in the case of the camera, hard to use, unless they produce two version of each SD device, one for side mounted slots, and one for top mounted. I can't see that happening.. so if side mounting becomes the standard, all those 50x series owners are hooped. Is this more short sightedness on Palm's part?
Nick Trevethan
Devon
UK
RE: Side-Mounted SD Slot
While not optimum, I don't think having peripherals projecting from the side will be a huge disadvantage. I'm already not planning on carrying my m505 in my pocket with any SD peripherals sticking out of it, no matter what side they are on. I think the potential for breakage is too high. I'll just pop them out and put them in another pocket. As for using the handheld with them attached, I don't see a big problem adjusting my grip. I'll just have to move my thumb a bit.
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News Editor
RE: Side-Mounted SD Slot
RE: MicroTroll
When he's done here he'll go over to Jewish site and post some useful comments on how they are all going to hell.
Don't listen to his trollishness.
RE: Side-Mounted SD Slot
Palm has done it again...and again
I don't think Palm has engineers, just deisigners. Does this company spend any money on R & D?
ZZZzzzz
RE: Palm has done it again...and again
Yawn.....
Performa 5200CD, 5210CD, 5215CD, 5220CD, 5260CD, 5260/120, 5270CD, 5280, 5300CD, 5320CD, the Performa 5400CD, 5400/160, 5400/180, 5430, 5440, the Performa 6110CD, 6112CD, 6115CD, 6116CD, 6117CD, 6118CD, the Performa 6200CD, 6205CD, 62190CD, 6214CD, 5216CD, 6218CD, 6220CD, 6230CD, 6260CD, 6290CD, 6300CD, 6310CD, 6320CD, the Performa 630, 630CD, 631CD, 635CD, 636, 636CD, 637CD, 638CD, 640CD...
RE: Yawn.....
*still has a performa 6200 - worst mac I've used.*
Amorya
RE: Yawn.....
Talk about crappy, varied products, check out the latest PPC machines!
Palm is bailing water with a leaky can
Sorry. The stupidity angers and depresses me. I like Palm OS devices, but I see precious little reason for hope in its future as they continue to throw away all their money.
I predict that the Palm hardware devision will be dead in a year, maybe year and a half. I predict that Palm OS devices may remain competitive thanks to Sony and possibly HandEra if they present a color device within the foreseeable future. And lets not forget that there are other companies, like Panasonic, preparing Palm OS devices which might prove highly innovative.
But Palm hasn't had an exciting, interesting innovation in two years and its killing them. They are carrying all this baggage about how easy it was to control the market by simply making a sleek-looking device, the PalmV, with little under the hood that was significantly different from previous products. So they keep trying to cash in on the same easy trick. All they have offered since the V is built-in communication and expandability. But their expansion platform choice is disastrous, having no developed expansion devices other than storage, and on a platform whose executive board is controlled by Micorsoft and PPC partners. You these people are ever going to let other MMC devices off the drawing board so long as Palm is around, staking its survival on them?
Face it, folks: better buy a Sony (and, yes, embrace the Memory Stick, which is soon to release actual MS devices other than storage) or jump ship altogether.
Sayanora, Palm!
RE: Palm is bailing water with a leaky can
Color devices are still too expensive for mass market. Your ready to pay $400 for color but most people aren't. When color breaks the $200 mark then monochrome will be dead, not before.
RE: Palm is bailing water with a leaky can
Side note: interesting to see that Palm finally decided to make the announcement official, on the same day they're supposed to announce their first quarter earnings (at least according to PDABuzz). Misdirection, anyone? People are speculating that Palm's got some bad news in that earnings report, this would seems to confirm it.
RE: Palm is bailing water with a leaky can - it's the plan
That's why you see MP3 play back and advanced screen technology from SONY and not Palm
Springboard technology from Handspring, NOT Palm
CF card support from Handera, NOT Palm
Palm has made the plan to make the basic, run of the mill, device to please the masses, and basically let all its lisenses do the work in finding new stuff to throw in. Then palm lets them have a short period where they are the only thing in the market, steals the idea and puts it into there products.
This allows them to fouces more on the OS and not R&D for the hardware, which is what they want to do anyways. Also they don't have to risk putting out a Palm that totaly flops (Palm VII, Palm IIIc, ect...) and losing lots of money. They put there money on the mass market, not the geeks that need toys.
RE: Palm is bailing water with a leaky can
Not bad, but nothing new
If Palm makes an equivalent device and charges $249, I'm sure everybody will throw out their old devices and get the new 125!
RE: Not bad, but nothing new
But now with their devices that do less and cost more than their Palm OS 'competitors' it's going to be very hard for them to continue to make sales based only their brand identity.
Being somewhat of a handheld expert (compared to my friends), people often ask me what device they should purchase. In the past I've alwasy found a Palm branded device that would fit their needs, but that's starting to get pretty tough.
For people who only care about the survival of Palm OS, I think that it's still in a good position. But the hardware group is suffering...
RE: Not bad, but nothing new
RE: Not bad, but nothing new
RE: Not bad, but nothing new
RE: Not bad, but nothing new
Out of the box the m125 has everything the top of the line models have, unlike the offerings of comparable devices from the Palm licensees. The m125 comes with a cradle not a hotsync cable. It comes with a full suite of connectivity and productivity software. At retail, the price of Documents to Go covers the $50 difference between the m125 and the Sony S320. When reviewers comment on the price of the m125 over the S320 they always seem to leave the value added stuff out.
When a consumer opens up the m125, virtually all software needs are addressed - to view pictures, to create, edit and view word processing documents and spreadsheets, has all the software needed to be connected to the internet including e-mail, attachments, pqas, AOL, and surf the web, not to mention the functionality of the built0in apps. I think that these items justify the price difference and arguably make the m125 a better deal than the devices offered by the licensees.
YMMV.
Also want to note that while I agree that Palm has a bit of a problem with the various accessories that are specific to the m1xx series that will work with the m125 and the peripherals that will work with both the m5xx and the m125, there have been outcries for years for Palm to make a uniform connector across models. This is a by-product of that accomodation. Because the devices have the same connector does not mean they will have the same form and thus the accessories will be different. Can Palm ever win, I mean, come on, cut them some slack. :)
RE: Not bad, but nothing new
RE: Not bad, but nothing new
RE: Not bad, but nothing new
Quoted:
<<"Actually, there already is a keyboard and wireless modem for the S320, and a prototype of a digital camera for the Clie has already been shown, something that hasn't been done for the Palm universal connector. Get your facts straight">>
Actually, there is a digital camera for the universal connector. It is called the Kodak PalmPix.
However, I believe that digital camera you are referring to is designed to work in the memory stick slot of the Sony devices. To date, there has only been news regarding mock ups of the digital camera to work with the Palm SD/MMC slot not a prototype. Ultimately, neither item actually exists as a consumer product, although the Sony device may be closer to existence, until it is on shelves its nothing more than hype.
At this point, I could, snidely suggest that you get your facts straight but that would be crass and immature.
RE: Not bad, but nothing new
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